Accomplished D'Andrade returns from Trinidad

Accomplished D’Andrade returns from Trinidad

Apr 16, 2009 Sports

Eyes AAG Senior Championships, Caribbean Games

Lionel D'Andrade

By Edison Jefford
An accomplished Lionel D’Andrade returned from Trinidad and Tobago Tuesday where his outstanding performances helped him believe that he can be among the top athletes at the quickly approaching Caribbean Games.

D’Andrade told Kaieteur Sport that he is back in Guyana for the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) National Senior Championships scheduled for next weekend and that he is expected to return to Trinidad after that meet.
“I have three 5k runs next month and all I am doing with these 5k is trying to improve my speed for the half marathon at the Caribbean Games,” D’Andrade indicated, adding that he believes that he can perform well at the event.
The qualifying time for the half marathon at the Caribbean Games is 1hr and 20 minutes but D’Andrade is of the view that he can better that standard by 10 minutes. He said that he don’t have a personal best time in the race.

“I don’t even have to train to run that time. And not me alone, I think Cleveland (Forde) and Kelvin (Johnson) can run that easily,” he boasted, while stating that the local trio may have to qualify automatically for the event.
“We may have to be automatic qualifiers since there is no half marathon in the Caribbean before the Games. I have to talk with Mr (Colin) Boyce (AAG President) to find out how he intends to deal with our situation,” he continued.
The top distance athlete believes that his performances in Trinidad, so far, augur well for the future since they were done early in the year. He said that he will reach his peak form in time for the inaugural Caribbean Games in Trinidad.

In the absence of adequate competition locally for distance athletes, D’Andrade among a host of other Guyanese athletes, often storm Trinidad to campaign. Other athletes from various Caribbean countries also do the same. D’Andrade placed second in his first event this year, the TUTA 10km race and returned a seventh place finish at the prestigious Trinidad International Marathon before topping the field in the Ministry of Community Development 5k run.
His decent form continued with a second place finish in the first race of the Kiss Road Race Series, which was followed with another second place at the 2 ½ mile distance race around the Savannah and first in the 5km Bishops run.

Before returning to Guyana, D’Andrade finished fourth in the 5000m at Southern Games and sixth in the 1500m. He also won the Rodney 5km race. The top athlete had told this newspaper that he prefers road races as opposed to the track.
He thanked his primary sponsor, Yadram Rajkumar, General Manager of General Industrial and Supplies Limited for his continued support.

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